Abstract SY17-01: The complexities of tumor associated macrophages and the key to effective targeting for anti-cancer therapy
Authors: Jennifer L. Guerriero
Journal: Cancer Research (2023)

Abstract Despite objective responses to poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibition and improvements in progression-free survival (PFS) compared to standard chemotherapy in patients with BRCA-associated triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), benefits are transitory. Using high-dimensional single-cell profiling of human TNBC, here we demonstrate that macrophages are the predominant infiltrating immune cell type in breast cancer susceptibility (BRCA)-associated TNBC. Macrophages are an innate immune cell that play a critical role in host defense and maintaining tissue homeostasis, however their infiltration into tumors has been associated with disease progression and resistance to therapy. Tumor associated macrophages (TAMs) represent a significant proportion of solid tumors, including breast cancer. TAMs play a major role in tumorigenesis as they can enhance tumor cell growth, angiogenesis and metastasis. In addition, TAMs can inhibit anti-tumor responses of T cells. Our recent work has shown that removal or conversion of TAMs to an anti-tumor phenotype enhances chemo- and immuno-therapy establishing TAMs as targets for anti-cancer therapy. Through multi-omics profiling, we show that PARP inhibitors enhance both anti- and pro-tumor features of macrophages through glucose and lipid metabolic reprogramming, driven by the sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 (SREBF1, SREBP1) pathway. Combining PARP inhibitor therapy with colony-stimulating factor 1 receptor (CSF1R)-blocking antibodies significantly enhanced innate and adaptive antitumor immunity and extended survival in mice with BRCA-deficient tumors in vivo, and this was mediated by CD8+ T cells. Collectively, our results uncover macrophage-mediated immune suppression as a liability of PARP inhibitor treatment and demonstrate that combined PARP inhibition and macrophage-targeting therapy induces a durable reprogramming of the tumor microenvironment (TME), thus constituting a promising therapeutic strategy for TNBC. Therefore, targeting TAMs offers great potential to enhance both chemo- and immuno-therapy. Deep analysis of TAMs in solid tumors has revealed the complexity of TAMs and revealed major gaps in our knowledge of the functional and phenotypic characterization of TAM subsets associated with cancer, before and after treatment. Here we will discuss the complexity of TAMs in solid tumors including characterizing TAM subsets, location, and crosstalk with neighboring cells, as well as novel TAM-modulating strategies and combinations that are likely to enhance current therapies and overcome chemo- and immuno-therapy resistance. Citation Format: Jennifer L. Guerriero. The complexities of tumor associated macrophages and the key to effective targeting for anti-cancer therapy. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2023; Part 1 (Regular and Invited Abstracts); 2023 Apr 14-19; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(7_Suppl):Abstract nr SY17-01.